Finally got myself a Briar, now what do I do?

paulwansing

Well, after hanging out on here and reading all the comments and great info in the threads I decided to broaden my horizons and get a briar pipe to go with my cob collection.  Went with a Grabow Omega, liked the look and it didn't cost a fortune.  Now I always read that Grabows are pre-smoked and required no break in (the whole break in process is one of the main reasons I never bothered with briar pipes, I'm afraid I will ruin a pipe because I don't know what I'm doing) The back of the package says to load half full and smoke slowly for a dozen or so bowls to break it in.  My question here is what do I do with the pipe, smoke it normal or break it in slowly?  How do I season this briar so I get many years of use out of it?  I am careful with my cobs, smoke the slow and give them days of rest along with regular pipe cleaning-do I just follow the same routine with the briar? Thanks in advance for any advise you may have and Happy New Year to everybody!

LostMason

The reason for smoking half bowls and such is to build a cake inside the bowl.

If you tobacco of choice is rather dry and you are sure of smoking to the bottom then by all

means load it and smoke. Just be wary of your tempo, keep it slow and don't clench.

you want to build an even cake to protect the briar. until you get a cake over heating

the bowl can ruin it quickly. With mine, I usually just load and go, but I tend to dry my

tobacco out until it's crispy. I get an even steady burn. The most important thing in my

opinion is to keep it slow and don't worry about relights. Build a cake about as thick as a dime.

Don't ream or scrape it until you have that cake, and then. only enough to keep it thin.

judandhispipe

Proper break-in techniques are a matter of some debate. I am personally a member of the load and go school. I am also a firm believer in using a blend I know well to break in a pipe. For me, that's  Lane's Ready Rubbed. I will smoke half a dozen bowls of Lane's as I get to know the pipe and where it fits in my rotation.  

paulwansing

I appreciate the advise, I'm glad to see @judandhispipe say load and go does in fact work because that is how I have treated every cob I own, and it has served me well but as I said I really didn't want to wreck a new briar.  So far I am enjoying it for my stronger blends like Atlas Balkan and Bayou Night.  Today I tried an aromatic (Russ' taxman cometh) and was not a fan, I had to puff too often to keep it lit which resulted in a hot smoke so I don't think I will try that again.  Perhaps in a different shaped briar pipe but for now those aro's on the rare occasion I smoke them will remain in my country gentleman

paulwansing

@judandhispipe I have heard Lane RR described as being similar to Sir Walter, I have never tried it as Lane or when it was Edgeworth-how would you describe the blend?  Is it rich burley or sweet/aro?

judandhispipe

@paulwansing, it's burley - not an aro like Captain Black,for example. Definitely what is sometimes known as a "codger burley", like Sir Walter or Prince Al.

Woodsman

It's always a good idea to use a tobacco that is familiar to you because you'll know  the smoking characteristics of it and can be more aware of any changes in the smoke. I'm using CH to break in my new handcrafted pipe and noticed a flavor change due to the coating in the bowl but it smokes well to the bottom. If I was  using a new tobacco I wouldn't be able to tell where it came from.

PappyJoe

@paulwansing - how's the break-in coming with your briar?

paulwansing

@PappyJoe - it seems to be coming along just fine!  I picked up one of p&c mystery briars from mitchell and thomas since they were on sale at $15 and ended up getting a bent billiard rusticated that I am really enjoying.  It was bare briar where the Grabow was pre-carbonized-I find I prefer the bare briar and creating my own carbon.  Since getting the M/T billiard the Grabow has been resting quite a bit.  As far as blends I still prefer most codgers in a cob, the one exception being Granger.  There is a whole different flavor to granger in a briar that I prefer.  Once there was a bit of cake forming I started trying my non-codger blends like bayou night, Atlas Balkan, and Nightcap in the briar and noticed they smoke a bit "fuller" in the briar vs. cob, just my opinion but the smoke from latakia and perique blends seems to me at least to have a cleaner flavor and a heavier smoke in briar.  I am slowly discovering which blends I want to smoke in what pipe but I am glad I gave briar another shot.

Woodsman

Sounds like you're right on track.

paulwansing

Figured I'd share a photo of these new briar pipes that I am breakin' in!

Deadpool57

Love it! I'm sure one day I'll get a briar, I'm just not a fan of having the bowl so close to my face.